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15:15:40

2007-07-13T00:15:00.001-07:00

"Pimp My Cart" tries to get teens to Racine library

With no driver's licenses and no cars to work on, about a dozen teens and preteens here redesigned library carts as part of the "Pimp My Cart" program.

Brittney Putzer, 13, said working on the old carts of the Racine Public Library was better than "sitting at home doing nothing."

The effort to get more teens to the library was a spin off of the popular MTV show "Pimp My Ride," where average cars are given new life with new parts and features for a more distinguished look.

The weekend event even got a few complaints that the library would use the word "Pimp" in promotional materials, said Anne Callaghan, the organizer and the children's services librarian.

"I don't think you should use an old dictionary to try to defend a modern meaning of a word," said Callaghan.

19:46:04

2007-07-12T04:46:00.001-07:00

Honda to produce green diesel cars: Report

TOKYO: Honda Motor Co plans to become the first Japanese carmaker to produce passenger vehicles with low-pollution, fuel-efficient diesel engines, a report said Wednesday. These vehicles emit 20 percent less carbon dioxide than petrol-powered ones while substantially reducing emissions of particulate matter and nitrogen oxides compared with conventional diesel cars, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun said without citing sources. Other Japanese carmakers are also bolstering efforts in this area, signalling that diesel may become the new environmentally-friendly alternative in the automobile industry, the business newspaper said. Although conventional diesel vehicles consume less fuel and emit less carbon dioxide than gasoline-powered cars, they do release harmful substances such as particulate matter and nitrogen oxides.

8:21:20

2007-07-06T17:21:00.001-07:00

Suzuki Bandit 1250S And BMW K1200R Sport - Cross Dressing

Trying to find that perfect companion is difficult for many motorcyclists. Quite a few don't want anything to do with the increasingly narrow-focus offerings that are sitting on showroom floors. They're looking for a big-bore, four-cylinder bike that can fill multiple roles with some sportbike influence, without the pretension of racy full fairings-but they don't want their ride to be bare naked, either.

BMW is looking to chop up its four-cylinder K-bike market segment yet again, with the K1200R Sport. Essentially the same as the K1200R naked bike we tested back in Dec. '05 ("Exhibitionist's Delight"), the K12R Sport adds a frame-mounted half-fairing utilizing the headlight assembly from the R1200S. The rest of the bike-from its 1157cc four tilted forward at a radical 55 degrees to its innovative Duolever front/Paralever rear suspension-is basically identical.

13:28:20

2007-07-05T22:28:00.001-07:00

Saturn dealers to offer Camry, Accord drives to Aura shoppers

The reinvigorated Saturn is one of the best things GM's got going right now. May 2007 sales were up 68% over the previous year (what a difference appealing product makes), and overall, it's up 30% YTD versus 2006. Now comes word from Bloomberg News that starting tomorrow, June 11, all but 5 of the 430 Saturn dealers in the US will offer prospective Aura shoppers comparison test drives in the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. According to Saturn's Lisa Hutchinson, its participating dealers are buying the imports that'll be used for the program, which runs through July 31. GM's showing a lot of confidence in its new products -- remember, Chevy dealers will have Camrys on the floor to compare to the new Malibu when it arrives, too. This is all good, and it could probably be even better. Follow the jump for a bit of editorializing.[Source: Bloomberg News] .

15:17:36

2007-06-27T00:17:00.001-07:00

USA Grand Prix, BMW Sauber F1: Preview

After achieving the best overall result in the short history of the BMW Sauber F1 Team at the Canadian Grand Prix with second for Nick Heidfeld, in just a week's time the next race, the US Grand Prix, will take place.

PLEASE NOTE

All statements in this preview have been made prior to race day in Montreal. Therefore, Robert Kubica's accident has not been taken into account. It will only be on Thursday in Indianapolis that a decision can be taken whether the Pole will be able to drive alongside Nick Heidfeld.

Nick Heidfeld:
"I like it when race tracks have a distinctive character, and that's definitely the case with .

21:44:44

2007-06-26T06:44:00.000-07:00

BMW website gives 'best experience'

New research shows that 85% of car buyers visit manufacturers' websites before purchasing, but those in the market for a new Ferrari could be disappointed.

The independent research was carried out by Global Reviews, a firm which specialises in customer experience benchmarking. In its sample of 1100 people, it found out what they looked for in a website to make it useful to them, used this to create a benchmark of the best sites, and then compared UK websites against it.

The best sites are scored out of 100, and Ferrari scored the lowest of the premium brands surveyed, scoring just 44% for user experience of its site. BMW offered the best customer experience with 76%.

Audi scored the highest for having full lists of its cars' features on its website (94%), but Ferrari again scored poorly at 39%.

17:03:49

2007-06-26T02:03:00.000-07:00

Ecclestone: US GP no necessity

One day after Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials hoped to sign a long-term agreement to keep the United States Grand Prix at the famed track, Ecclestone wrote a letter reiterating his position that an American race isn't a necessity for the globe-hopping F1 series.

"It is not vital to Formula One to be in the United States," Ecclestone wrote, the series' website reported on Thursday. "There are bigger markets for us to be in other parts of the world. We could be in India soon instead of the United States."

Ecclestone voiced a similar opinion last summer before signing a one-year extension to continue racing at Indy. He was expected to arrive in Indianapolis late on Thursday.

Speedway president Joie Chitwood declined, through a spokesperson, to respond to the letter.

In an interview on Wednesday, before the letter was made public, Chitwood said Ecclestone and speedway boss Tony George were expected to meet this week and that race organisers wanted to have a long-term deal in place by the end of Sunday's US GP.

13:41:18

2007-06-25T22:41:00.001-07:00

Pierre Kleinubing Collects His First SCCA Pro Racing Speed Touring ...

Pierre Kleinubing, of Coconut Creek, Fla., collected his first SCCA Pro Racing SPEED Touring Car pole of the season for Monday's Round Three race at Lime Rock Park. Chip Herr, of Lititz, Pa., will start outside the front row.

Driving the No. 1 Acura Certified Pre-Owned/RealTime Acura TSX, the defending series Champion broke the Mazda qualifying streak with a time of 58.153 (94.715 mph) around the 1.53-mile track. The pole is the second for Kleinubing at Lime Rock Park and his record 31st career pole.

"I felt like [the TriPoint Mazdas] were my teammates today, " Kleinubing said of his lap. "You can try to plan something for qualifying, but it never works. But that's what they did for me. Jeff [Altenburg] moved over after the uphill and then it was Randy [Pobst] right ahead of me.

21:02:49

2007-06-24T06:02:00.000-07:00

Win Cash and an iPod Shuffle for Playing Free Online Games ...

Members of the free online flash games site, www.ArcadeCow.com, will have the chance to win an iPod Shuffle just for playing free online games, with a contest the site is running from March 13th, 2007 to April 14th, 2007.

Boston, MA (PRWEB) March 13, 2007 -- Reality Knights and Arcade Cow, a free flash games site with over 2,500 free online games available to members and non-members, will be running a high score contest for Arcade Cow members from March 13th, 2007 to April 14th, 2007. Prizes will include an iPod shuffle and iTunes gift card for the players with the top five highest scores. The top player will receive an additional $30 cash prize.

While Arcade Cow offers a free online gaming experience to both members and non-members, a free membership is required in order for gamers to participate in the high score contest, because membership allows for saved game scores.

21:10:24

2007-06-23T06:10:00.001-07:00

Big East Report Card

With only two Big East teams still alive in the post-season, it's time to give each program a final grade for the 2006-2007 season. Grades are based primarily on each team's record/performance during the season, with secondary consideration given to how its performance related to pre-season expectations. The Report Card is divided into two parts, the bottom half of the teams (up today), and the top half (up tomorrow).

Big East Report Card: Bottom Eight

DePaul: The Blue Demons were the third team tied for seventh in the conference with a 9-7 record. However, Coach Jerry Wainwright's squad had the lowest RPI of the trio, significantly lower than Villanova's, which is why the Wildcats received an invitation to the Big Dance and DePaul didn't. The reality is that the Demons were probably the ninth best team in the conference, which happens to be right where I'd placed them in my pre-season predictions.

11:43:36

2007-06-17T20:43:00.001-07:00

`Clear' Card Expedites Air Travel

Drivers with electronic passes often stream through toll booths while others fumble for change and idle in long lines.

Now that same technology-driven split among travelers is becoming more evident at airports around the country.

.

10:08:21

2007-06-17T19:08:00.001-07:00

Thames kids face off over chess board

Robert Green, 11, likes chess for its strategy. Semaj Harris, 10, likes the king because it's the most powerful piece. Ten-year-old Maya Loncar likes the game because she can beat the tar out of unsuspecting opponents.

The game of kings, it seems, has a lot to offer elementary school students.

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2007-06-12T06:26:00.001-07:00

HQUANT Launches Lodging Derivative Index

MANHATTAN/ITHACA, N.Y. | HQuant LLC today announced at the Morgan Stanley CMBS New Products Conference in Manhattan, the introduction of the HQuant Lodging Index (HLI), a new sophisticated investment tool for investors who wish to participate in the future performance of the hotel industry without investing in the underlying real estate. The HQuant Lodging Index, the first of its kind, will provide detailed information on seasonally adjusted hotel average daily rates (ADR) based on data collected on more than 3 million U.S. hotel rooms, or approximately 68 percent of the nation's total.

The HQuant Index will enable traders to buy and sell derivative contracts tied to the performance of the U.S. lodging industry. A number of major trading groups have expressed interest in subscribing to the index service.

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2007-06-12T03:16:00.001-07:00

Covenant Transport Revenue Up, But Has Net Loss For Quarter

Covenant Transport, Inc. (Nasdaq: CVTI) announced today financial and operating results for the quarter ended March 31, including a rise in revenue but a net loss.

Additionally, the company announced a proposed name change for the Nevada-based holding company from Covenant Transport, Inc. to Covenant Transportation Group, Inc.

For the quarter, total revenue increased 9.8%, to $166.4 million from $151.5 million in the same quarter of 2006.

Freight revenue, which excludes fuel surcharges, increased 10.9%, to $143.5 million in the 2007 quarter from $129.4 million in the 2006 quarter. The company measures freight revenue because management believes that fuel surcharges tend to be a volatile source of revenue and the removal of such surcharges affords a more consistent basis for comparing results of operations from period to period.

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2007-06-12T01:39:00.000-07:00

A case study on a construction contract (7)

I may apply to Guinness (not the beverage company, I mean the book of records) because my article series is approaching two-digit numbers. This may be the longest legal article series in the world, who knows? I will continue without interruption, otherwise we will never be able to finish.

Yesterday I wrote, 鈥淟et's see if Mr. False Contractor picked up the phone or just ran away" -- thank you for reading my corner again today.

Of course Mr. False Contractor did not run away (well, not yet). First he has to make some money. He picked up the phone and talked to Mr. Investor. He reminded Mr. Investor that the construction period is 18 months as this is clearly stated in the contract, he and also mentioned how much he wants to finish this project and go ahead with other projects along with Mr.

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2007-06-11T23:33:00.001-07:00

Fractional Fairytale: The dream of owning a vacation home can come ...

In the last 10 years, buying a second home has become the epitome of the American dream. Homeownership may have marked entry into the promised land, but it was the vacation property that fueled the most ecstatic visions: wineries, beach houses, pieds-à-terre and mountain cabins. These were not places where people lived, worked and paid bills, but where life unfolded according to the seasons, with the ebb and flow of recreation, family reunions and private retreats.

As the real estate boom crested, the second-home market swelled as well, even helping to stem falling prices when the boom busted. In 2005, second-home sales rose more than twice as fast as all new single-family-home sales and nearly four times faster than all resale homes, according to the National Association of Realtors.

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2007-06-11T21:48:00.001-07:00

Shoprite's basket fills up

Johannesburg - Shoprite Holdings on Tuesday reported a 26 percent increase in diluted headline earnings per share from 65.7 cents to 82.8 cents for the 26 weeks to the end of December 2006. The group's trading profit for the half-year was up 27.9 percent to R717.3 million, with turnover reflecting a 14.9 percent growth from R16.621 billion to R19.105 billion. Non-South African supermarkets achieved a 28 percent sales growth. The group's South African supermarket operation, which encompasses three chains - Shoprite, Checkers and Usave - grew turnover by 13.9 percent to R15.1 billion. The dividend per share proposed for the interim period reflects a 29.6 percent increase from 27 cents to 35 cents. Chief executive Whitey Basson said: "Management is satisfied with the growth achieved in the first six months of the 2007 financial year, especially as this was achieved despite 12 weeks of industrial action that affected, in particular, the operations of the Shoprite brand.

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2007-06-10T03:58:00.001-07:00

Mum and baby found dead in pool

AN INVESTIGATION has been launched after a woman and her 21-month-old baby daughter drowned in a private swimming pool in Warwickshire.

Their distraught husband and father, Vinh Nguyen, discovered their lifeless bodies floating face down in the pool.

He desperately tried to resuscitate them and called 999 when they showed no signs of life.

Paramedics and two air ambulances were quickly on the scene but both mother and daughter were pronounced dead on arrival at Warwick Hospital.

Mr Nguyen, aged 37, made the tragic discovery after going to join his wife Annie Tang, aged 33, and young daughter Summer, for a swim at Falconhurst House, in Henley Road, Outhill, Studley.

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2007-06-10T02:18:00.001-07:00

Your piggybank is bringing home the bacon

The latest rise in interest rates is not all bad news: mortgage repayments will nudge up again but savers are being offered some of the juiciest deals in years. Paul Farrow picks the best

Savings rates are at their highest for six years following the Bank of England's decision to raise the cost of borrowing to 5.5 per cent.

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2007-06-10T00:41:00.001-07:00

The National Common Minimum Program in India

India is a country of largest population of heterogeneous nature. In a population wise it is just after China. Since independence different programmes has been formulated by different government, and every five year, new five year plan being implemented, but particularly after the emergence of coalition politics, the picture changed its nature of development. This article focus on the UPA's Common Minimum Programme (CMP) which passed by the UPA to give more attention on developmental issue to all the sections of the society as well as to all the areas including states and union territories of the Republic of India. It is very difficult to discuss all the programmes, because of its vast nature and area. This article focuses on the few areas of the Common Minimum Programme which is directly or indirectly related to the common people of this country.

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2007-06-09T20:52:00.001-07:00

Off Plan Property Web Site Announces Launch of Property Listings ...

More and more people are adding international investment property to their property portfolios, and historically, off plan property purchases have provided excellent returns for many people in many countries. Offplanproperty.info aims to become the leading web site aimed at those interested in buying off plan property, new build properties and renovated properties in the world wide property markets.

London, England (PRWEB) April 27, 2007 -- Ownership of property overseas by the British alone has grown over 50% since 2000. This represents an all time record of nearly 260,000 people who own a foreign property -- usually in a cheaper and sunnier country.

Whilst Spain has historically been the most popular choice among the British and many other nationalities for buying property there is a growing interest in the emerging (and substantially less expensive) property markets around the world.

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2007-06-09T18:20:00.001-07:00

Japan's Bonds May Rise on Speculation Stock Drop to Spur Demand

May 11 (Bloomberg) -- Japan's government notes may advance, halting a five-day drop, on speculation a slump in global stocks will increase demand for debt.

Five-year notes may end the longest slide since December after a U.S. report showed the trade gap widened more than expected in March, spurring expectations the government may cut its first-quarter gross domestic product estimate. U.S. stocks tumbled the most in almost two months and Treasuries gained.

``Japanese bonds will probably stay firm, taking a cue from concerns over a slowdown in the U.S. economy, losses in U.S. stocks and gains in Treasuries,'' said Tokyo-based Kazuhiko Sano, chief strategist at Nikko Citigroup Ltd., the fifth-largest buyer at government debt auctions.

Ten-year bond futures for June delivery rose to 134.05 on the London International Financial Futures Exchange yesterday from 133.95 on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

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2007-06-09T09:28:00.001-07:00

Loonie recoups losses

TORONTO (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar finished lower versus the U.S. currency Friday but managed to recoup nearly all the steep losses it suffered early in the session when data showed the economy lost jobs in April.

Canadian bond prices finished just a touch higher despite an early boost from the weak jobs data and soft U.S. data that sparked hopes for a rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve.

The Canadian dollar closed at $1.1122 to the U.S. dollar, or 89.91 US cents, down from $1.1112, or 89.99 US cents, at Thursday's close.

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2007-06-09T07:18:00.001-07:00

China setting up new forex agency

BEIJING: China is setting up a new investment agency to seek higher returns on its foreign currency reserves of more than US$1 trillion, the largest stockpile in the world, Finance Minister Jin Renqing said.

It was the first official confirmation of China's plans, which Premier Wen Jiabao foreshadowed in January by saying Beijing would actively explore new ways of using the reserves.

The biggest priority is safety, and under the principle of security we will try to increase the efficiency of management and the investments' returns, Jin told a news conference yesterday.

He gave no details of how much money the fund would manage, let alone how it might invest. But Jin said Singapore's state-owned Temasek would be one of its models.

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2007-06-09T05:16:00.000-07:00

Destra Corporation Limited ASX: DES - Destra Magna and Quickflix ...

Sydney, May 14, 2007 (ACN Newswire) - Destra Corporation Limited [B@11b7c86; Boardroomradio is pleased to announce that Destra Corporation Limited (ASX: DES) has published an audio file. The following presentation "Destra Magna and Quickflix VOD Release" is now available as an instant audio download to your computer. You may also transfer this information to your listening device as an IPod podcast.The BRR service is based on streaming audio sent in compressed form over the internet and displayed as it arrives. You do not have to wait for the whole file to be downloaded before you can hear it, instead the media is sent in a continuous stream and is played immediately as it reaches your computer. Please note that during live broadcasts there can be a delay of approximately 1-2 minutes, depending on traffic through your Internet Service Provider.Broadcaster: Destra Corporation Limited (ASX: DES)Broadcast Title: Destra Magna and Quickflix VOD ReleaseBroadcast Type: Audio streamView the Audio stream for Destra Corporation Limited (ASX: DES) below.Users other then Internet Explorer: Please click the link below.

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2007-06-09T03:39:00.000-07:00

Jeff Saut Presents: Electrifying

Editor's Note: The following article was written by Raymond James Chief Investment Strategist, Jeff Saut. It has been reproduced with permission for the benefit of the Minyanville community.

"I was reading Lowell Miller’s (Woodstock NY utility’s manager par excellence) 1Q '07 report and ran across a rather amazing statement. He stated ‘some observers have suggested that new electricity infrastructure expenditures (which create both regulated and unregulated returns on investment) over the next twenty years may equal the entire market capitalization of ALL investor owned US utilities.’ Wow...I was wondering if you had any thoughts as to how we might profit!"--David

We have marveled at the relentless upward march of the DJIA over the past months as despite spurious fundamentals, weakening economic statistics, sticky interest rates, and a deteriorating U.S.

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2007-06-09T00:50:00.001-07:00

Investing: The truth about actively managed funds

They say you get what you pay for, but mutual fund investors often get less. Actively managed stock portfolios find it hard to achieve the returns of low-cost index-tracking funds, and that was especially true last year.

In 2003, when the bull market began, 61 percent of actively managed funds specializing in American stocks beat the return of the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index, according to the research firm Morningstar. The following two years produced similar results, but in 2006 the figure plunged to 32 percent.

Greater volatility and a leveling off in the relative performance of shares of smaller companies, which many managers favor and which showed far more strength early in the bull market, accounts for some of the dramatic falloff. But there are enough other factors for some analysts and financial planners to conclude that last year is the rule, not the exception.

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2007-06-08T23:13:00.001-07:00

Forex Daily Technical Report EUR/USD Breaks 1.33 Level, US CPI Watched

Euro broke out of recent range and surges to new high at 1.33 level today on back of disappointing NY state and Philly Fed index from US yesterday. Former Fed Chairman Greenspan's comment that the subprime mortgage problem was "not a small issue" weighs on the greenback too. Greenspan also said that the economic fallout from the subprime market may not be contained to the financial sector and more pain could be in the pipeline. However, dollar is still kept in established range against yen, sterling and canadian dollar. Markets will focus on today's CPI release to see whether it can trigger broad based dollar weakness.

Growth in core CPI peaked last Sept at 2.9% and moderated to 2.6% in Dec. However, Jan's rise of 2.7% prompted speculation that such moderate may have bottomed.

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2007-06-06T06:45:00.001-07:00

Refer to a friend

ROCKVILLE, Md., March 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Researchers from the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI) today announced the publication of several studies from the Sorcerer II Global Ocean Sampling Expedition (GOS) in PLoS Biology (http://www.plosbiology.org/) detailing the discovery of millions of new genes, thousands of new protein families and specifically the characterization of thousands of new protein kinases from ocean microbes using whole environment shotgun sequencing and new computational tools. Researchers believe these data will lead to better understanding of key biological processes which could eventually offer new ideas for .

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2007-06-06T05:10:00.001-07:00

Career Day teaches sixth graders about potential job choices

ZANESVILLE - You'd be hard-pressed to find a sixth-grade student who knows what he or she want to do for a career.

But local school officials are trying to do what they can to encourage middle school students to begin thinking about the possibilities early on in the process.

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2007-06-06T00:24:00.000-07:00

Alleged Insurance Scam Revealed

A Newhall man has been arrested by the Department of Insurance on suspicion of staging the theft of his truck in a scheme to defraud his auto insurance carrier of $45,000.

Eric Joseph Horvat, 28, was arrested Feb. 23 on one felony count of insurance fraud and one felony count of perjury stemming from a stolen vehicle report he made concerning his customized 2006 Ford F-150, the Department of Insurance reported Friday.

"Let this be a lesson for anyone with 'buyer's remorse' considering a similar stunt: We will not tolerate insurance fraud in this state," Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner said.

In January, insurance investigators received a tip that Horvat was looking for someone to help him stage the theft of his vehicle.

An undercover officer contacted Horvat and arranged a series of meetings, during which Horvat reportedly indicated that he no longer wanted his truck and wanted to stage its theft so his insurer, Mercury Insurance, would pay off the $45,000 balance he owed on it.

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2007-06-05T01:03:00.001-07:00

Reports Ratings Upgrade From AM Best Company

FAIRFIELD, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 20, 2007--Ohio Casualty Group today announced that effective March 20, 2007, A.M. Best Company raised its financial strength and issuer credit ratings (ICR) on Ohio Casualty Group and its member companies to 'A' (Excellent) and 'a' from 'A-' and 'a-' respectively. The outlook is stable. At the same time, A.M. Best upgraded the ICR and senior debt ratings to 'bbb' from 'bbb-' for the Group's parent, Ohio Casualty Corporation (NASDAQ:OCAS). Ohio Casualty Corporation is the holding company of The Ohio Casualty Insurance Company, which is one of six property-casualty insurance companies that make up Ohio Casualty Group. Ohio Casualty Group's Chief Executive Officer Dan Carmichael, CPCU, expressed Ohio Casualty's pleasure with the upgrade: "This action confirms our belief that Ohio Casualty financial results are deserving of a solid 'A' rating.

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2007-06-04T23:01:00.000-07:00

Assurant Names John B. Euwema Senior Vice President, Legal

NEW YORK, March 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Assurant, Inc. ("Assurant") (NYSE: AIZ) , a premier provider of specialty insurance and insurance-related products and services, announced today that John B. Euwema has joined the company's legal department as senior vice president.

Mr. Euwema, 55, brings more than 30 years of experience to Assurant. He was most recently senior vice president, general counsel, secretary and chief compliance officer for GE Consumer Finance Partnership Marketing Group where he managed a staff of 40 attorneys, paralegals, claims personnel, compliance analysts and public relations specialists. His legal experience includes: acquisitions and joint ventures; regulatory and legislative affairs; as well as marketing and compliance.

Mr. Euwema will work closely with Ms.

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2007-06-03T20:07:00.001-07:00

Insurance Auto Auctions Announces Improved Fourth Quarter and Full ...

WESTCHESTER, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 19, 2007--Insurance Auto Auctions, Inc., a leading provider of automotive salvage and claims processing services in the United States, today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and full-year 2006. The Company's strong performance in 2006 was driven by successfully integrating acquisitions and greenfields along with increased buying activity as a result of the Company's live auctions combined with Internet bidding capability. The Company recorded revenues for the quarter of $92.6 million, compared to $69.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2005, an increase of 32.5%. Fee income in the fourth quarter increased to $79.2 million versus $59.6 million in the fourth quarter of last year. The Company reported Consolidated EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) consistent with the definition in the Company's senior credit agreement of $15.8 million during the quarter compared to $10.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2005, an increase of 56.4%.

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2007-06-03T17:41:00.001-07:00

Insurance.com Buys 4insurance.com

Online agency Insurance.com has purchased personal lines insurance shopper 4insurance.com, one of the original insurance sites on the internet.

As a result of the acquisition, 4insurance.com will offer car insurance quotes from over a dozen auto insurance companies.

Launched in 1996 by iHomeowners, 4insurance.com offers consumers the ability to shop for auto, life, home and health insurance products.

At 4insurance.com, consumers answer one set of questions in order to get multiple rates from top companies, and can then select and purchase a policy online or over the phone with in-house licensed agents.

Insurance.com, based in Solon, Ohio, is owned and operated by Insurance.com, Inc., a ComparisonMarket Company. In addition to car insurance, it sells life, health and home insurance as well as travel, dental and pet health insurance.

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2007-06-03T15:57:00.001-07:00

Oscar Predictions: What will the nominees wear?

You've seen my trend predictions, we've raided the couture shows for tips, and now I'm ready to make wild claims that'll no doubt prove untrue. It's time for the Catwalk Queen pre-Oscar predictions. Nope, I'm not guessing who'll win the gongs, but which designers and looks the female nominees will go for. My money's on Cate Blanchett (shown left at the Berlin Film Festival in a purple Yves Saint Laurent number I picked up on a few days ago) and Kate Winslet looking the best....

Performance by an actress in a leading role

Penélope Cruz in "Volver" Penélope is a big fan of subtly romantic, timeless looks from designers like Oscar De La Renta and Georgio Armani, and usually goes for strapless shapes and dramatic colours. She's done yellow, black and green so perhaps this year she'll be one of the ladies in white or pale peach or blue? It wouldn't surprise me, though I'd like to see her in something more dramatic, perhaps deep red or a bold blue, or really detailed beading or embroidery.

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2007-06-03T08:23:00.001-07:00

Jury finds Springfield man guilty of killing Sheila Wilson

DECATUR - A Macon County Circuit Court jury took less than three hours on Friday to find Tony A. Rolfe guilty of first-degree murder in the May 4, 2003, stabbing death of Sheila M. Wilson.Associate Judge James Coryell set Rolfe's sentencing hearing for April 24.The 30-year-old Springfield man faces 20 to 60 years in prison when he is sentenced, said Assistant State's Attorney Steve Langhoff, who prosecuted the case with Assistant State's Attorney Elizabeth Dobson.Rolfe will have to serve 100 percent of whatever sentence he receives, Langhoff said.Wilson, 30, suffered at least 50 stab and cutting wounds from a box cutter-style knife and died from loss of blood in the basement of her mother's house in the 1900 block of East Prairie Avenue. Police found bloody shoe impressions in the basement and kitchen of the house.A theory of the case presented by state witnesses was that Wilson was killed when Rolfe went to her house to steal up to a pound of marijuana.Key testimony in the weeklong trial came from Torre Wilson, Sheila Wilson's boyfriend at the time of her death.

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2007-06-03T06:41:00.001-07:00

Accessories for iPods proliferates

From a solar-powered battery charger that fairly shouts "eco-friendly rawk!" to a clock-radio fit for a space odyssey, there are better ways to run your iPod.

Feeding, clothing and caring for your iPod with accessories has become a major American growth industry, seeing as how Apple sold 21 million of its media players in the last three months before Christmas. Estimates put the sales market for iPod add-ons at $1 billion a year, and growing fast.

Companies like Griffin, Belkin, JBL and Bose have either launched or revived entire brand names by jumping on the iPod's goodwill marketing train.

Many of the accessories are ridiculous, of course. Do you need the $40 iFish that amplifies your iPod and flops around on the floor in time to the music? Or the iPod dock for the bathroom that also dispenses toilet paper? We think not.

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2007-06-03T03:44:00.000-07:00

Wilson's rise proclaims the revenge of the nerd

Rainn Wilson -- perhaps better known to you as sycophantic, promotion-obsessed paper salesman Dwight Schrute on NBC's The Office -- has a dream for his deluded character. Dwight will marry his love interest Angela (Angela Kinsey), procreate feverishly and create, in Baron Von Trapp fashion, a dynasty of singing Schrutes. "They could sing Amish war anthems, if such a thing exists," says Wilson.

Dwight Schrute is among the most enjoyably cringe-worthy characters TV has produced. "I love that the writers keep throwing me different things to do," says Wilson. "I can be a crypto-fascist nerd, but show a lot of colors and textures."

It was another nerd -- Arthur on HBO's Six Feet Under -- who got Wilson an audition for the lead in The Office. The part of Michael ultimately went to Steve Carell, but Wilson nailed Dwight, drawn, as he told one reporter, on "a whole slew of white trash middle managers and gun enthusiasts in my family."

Two years and a Dwight bobblehead doll later, Wilson, 41, is taking a turn for the serious in the new film The Last Mimzy, in which he plays a likable science teacher named Larry White who is drawn into an E.T.-like spiritual quest.

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2007-06-03T01:11:00.001-07:00

Man, 30, charged in hit-and-run death

Police on Friday charged a township man in connection with the hit-and-run death of an 84-year-old township woman, who was struck after leaving the diner where she had been a regular customer.

Timothy J. Napolitano, 30, of Sharon Drive was charged with leaving the scene of an accident that resulted in a fatality and with tampering with evidence, according to the Monmouth County Prosector's Office.

The victim, Helen Adams Gilman, initially survived the crash on Feb. 9, but died eight days later at Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune.

Gilman sustained a severe head injury and a broken left leg when she was hit about 8:15 p.m. after leaving the Sunset Diner on Sunset Avenue. The force of the impact carried her up into the car's windshield and back onto the roadway, according to the police investigation.

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2007-06-02T23:01:00.001-07:00

Mullaly drops in at highest-volume Ford dealer for some face time

Last week Ford CEO Alan Mulally visited a Blue Oval dealership in Dearborn and helped move three units off the showroom floor in 40 minutes. This week he further fulfilled his promise to walk in the shoes of a dealer for a day by visiting Galpin Motors in North Hills, CA. Galpin isn't a Ford dealership, it's the Ford dealership, regularly posting the highest volume of sales in the country. It's side business, Galpin Auto Sports, is where MTV tapes Pimp My Ride. Automotive News didn't report that Mulally got to sell any vehicles during his stop off at Galpin like he did at Village Ford in Dearborn, but the CEO did spend some time touring the dealership's entire facility. We're not sure if Mulally has satisfied his verbal commitment to be a dealer for a day, or if visits like this might become common place in the future.

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2007-06-02T21:23:00.001-07:00

Video games grow up as ownership by adults rises

LOS ANGELES: Video games aren't just for the kids anymore. More than one in three US adults who go online, or 37%, own a video game console and 16% own a portable gaming device, Nielsen//NetRatings said. The majority of those console owners, 71%, are married, and 66% have at least one child in the household. "As game consoles have become increasingly sophisticated, families have incorporated them into their centralised home media centres, which include the television, digital recording device, digital music player and the PC," said Carolyn Creekmore, senior director of media analytics, Nielsen//NetRatings. Microsoft and Sony are positioning their Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles as entertainment hubs for gaming, music and photo viewing amid a fierce battle for dominance in the $30 billion global video- game market.

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2007-06-02T18:54:00.001-07:00

Skin Care Treatment Products for Acne May Exacerbate the Problem

Although acne is generally considered to be an oily skin problem caused by excess sebum production, those with dry skin are just as susceptible. In fact, it is possible that that adult acne now affecting about 20 percent of the population and climbing - is caused by years of using harsh skin care treatment products that eventually result in dry skin, which then leads to acne. Acne treatment products then further dry the skin and youre off into the vicious cycle of the cure becoming the cause. How do you handle this? As always, prevention is the easiest route - best done by choosing skin care treatment products that dont cause dry skin or other damage but, no matter what your skin type, if you understand what causes acne, you will find it much easier to prevent, and cure. Heres how it works.

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2007-06-02T09:06:00.001-07:00

Help Your PC's Graphics Make Vista and XP Sparkle

Windows Vista clearly ups the ante on PC graphics power. No matter how basic or advanced your machine, chances are you can upgrade its graphics hardware to run Vista's Aero interface--or improve XP--for viewing online videos, playing games, and using other graphics-heavy apps.

Find the connection: If the video connector on the back of your PC is next to the USB, PS/2, and other ports that are attached directly to the motherboard, your system has integrated graphics. Make sure your computer has an open AGP or PCI Express x16 slot.

If your PC does not automatically disable the old graphics processor when a new card is installed, enter your system's BIOS (watch for the key to press when your system starts but before Windows loads) and disable the setting for integrated graphics.

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2007-06-02T03:09:00.001-07:00

The Undoubtedly Negro Sport of Hockey?

This article is part of a series in celebration of a new, dynamic voice in Black America: the NUBIANO Exchange. Brace yourself for the NUBIANO experience. by Michael HutsonFor as long as anyone can remember, the performance of the organized sport has been one of the most cherished pastimes of American culture. From an entertainment perspective, sporting institutions have created many financial gains for corporate entities.

From a social perspective, they have served not only as blatantly visible achievements for young athletes, but also as a divider for who’s who among the social hierarchy. Few other countries have succeeded in cultivating as many mainstream sports as the United States; however, few countries have succeeded in creating such racial boundaries within these sports as well.Just about every sport has a predominant race that is supposedly "the best" at doing it.

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2007-06-01T06:15:00.001-07:00

Drivers may get break on policy

Three decades ago when then-Gov. Marvin Mandel heard from constituents about the high cost of automobile insurance, he bucked opposition from industry and pushed through legislation that set up a unique state agency to act as an insurer of last resort.

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2007-06-01T00:30:00.001-07:00

In the Autoblog Garage: 2007 Chevy Aveo LT

With cars, first impressions carry a lot of influence. Bad first impression? Then it's on to the next candidate. But when a car connects at that first meeting, you're inclined to hang around a bit to see what else it has to offer. And so goes the story of my time with the Chevy Aveo.The Aveo arrived after we spent a week with the luxurious and capable Cadillac SRX. To say that personally-held expectations regarding the rebadged Daewoo were low would be understating the matter. The previous generation, despite being a strong seller for GM, was stylistically uninspiring, and it would not have been the least bit surprising to find more of the same in the new one. Upon taking delivery of Autoblog's shiny blue loaner, we were taken aback. The Aveo, you see, makes quite a good first impression. .

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2007-05-31T21:51:00.001-07:00

Hope time

HOPE -- It isn't easy putting into words the lure of place like Hope, a rush-hour-free zone of self-reliant folks, great dogs, a healthy mix of respectable vehicles and a few rust buckets with license plates that expired sometime in the previous millennium.

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2007-05-30T21:11:00.001-07:00

Reliant Now Fully Accessible under the Filogix System and an ...

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Reliant Home Warranty Corporation (OTCBB:RHWC), Steve Hamilton, SVP Reliant, announced today Reliant's Canadian subsidiary, Reliant Home Mortgage Canada Inc., has completed its contract with Filogix Inc. and Reliant's mortgage products are fully accessible under the Filogix mortgage delivery system. When the system was activated May 4, 2007, the Filogix system had archived 109 mortgage applications that had been submitted for Reliant's underwriting for a total of $33,170,471.77 in mortgage applications submitted. The Filogix system will allow Reliant to be accessible to the bulk of Canadian mortgage brokers and should allow for an increase in the volume of mortgage applications under adjudication by Reliant's underwriting department.

Steve Hamilton stated, "Reliant's mortgage delivery platform and mortgage volumes submitted will help ensure Reliant stays on track and increase overall accessibility to the Canadian Mortgage Broker community as evidenced by the mortgages archived in the Filogix system."

About Reliant Home Warranty Corporation

Reliant Home Warranty Corporation (www.relianthwc.com) offers the sub-prime residential mortgage market High-Ratio to value mortgages that includes self-employed consumers and those with difficult credit.

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2007-05-30T06:20:00.000-07:00

Man Confesses to 9/11 Attacks

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, in detention in Guantanamo Bay, has confessed to masterminding the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States, as well as the 1993 attack at the World Trade Center and attempted shoe-bombing attacks.

"I was responsible for the 9/11 operation from A to Z," Mohammed said in a statement that was read during the session, which was held last Saturday.

Mark Denbeaux, a Seton Hall University law professor who represents two Tunisians held at Guantanamo, said that Mohammed is likely the only viable suspect at Guantanamo Bay, adding, "None of the others [at Guantanamo Bay] rise to this level."

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2007-05-30T04:28:00.001-07:00

RREDC executive director entreats innovation in education, technology

Last year, the Rio Rancho Economic Development Corp.'s annual meeting came with a major announcement when Lionsgate Films officially announced its commitment to build at the City Centre.This year's annual meeting came not with an announcement but rather with a challenge for the future.

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2007-05-30T02:50:00.000-07:00

Guess the port loves fast cars more than ships

In a surprise announcement made on the steps of the Legislative Building in Olympia on Saturday, officials from NASCAR and the Port of Tacoma inked a deal to bring a world-class auto racing facility to Tacoma.

Just as NASCAR's chances of succeeding with the Washington Legislature were dimming, the port moved into the pole position. The $368 million track, expected to be ready for racing by 2010, will be built between Highway 509 and the Blair Waterway.

"Gentlemen – and ladies," port Commissioner Jake Fabulous said with a smile, "start your economic engines."

"They bought it. I can't believe they bought it," said Florida Speedway Corp. President Jon Swift, before realizing that his microphone was on. He then quickly added something about a win-win situation and it being a great day for race fans.

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Botswana: Satmos to Be Privatized

Struggling Mascom Premier League side FC Satmos is undergoing a transformation. After the deep financial crisis following the death of club owner Sam Sono, the Satmos management has resolved to privatise the outfit that is currently run as a community-based organisation.

In the meantime, the officials have agreed to hand over control to former national goalkeeper, Mooketsi 'China' Mading. The conditions of the impending privatisation are still being worked out. In a recent meeting to brief supporters, the management explained that it has been finding it difficult to run the club hence the decision to privatise. Publicity officer Mpenzeni Sambandawe told Mmegi Sport after the meeting that supporters agreed to the proposal.

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2007-05-29T22:00:00.001-07:00

Rochester calendar

Break of Day Toastmasters, Christ United Methodist Church, 400 Fifth Ave. S.W., Rochester. 255-3391. 7 a.m.-8 a.m. Improve your communication skills. Toastmasters meets each Wednesday in March. Contact: Angela Jackson.

Lenten Series, Faith United Methodist Church, Fourth Street Southwest and LaFayette, Eyota. 6 p.m. "Compassion and Caring for Others." Presenters will be Dr. Scott Steinmann and nurse Sheri Merten of Mayo Clinic's Orthopedics Department.

Google and More, Rochester Public Library, 101 Second St. S.E. 285-8000. 9:30 a.m. Learn about other Internet search tools. Register online, at the library or by calling 285-8002.

Olmsted County Youth Commission, Conference Rooms A/B, 2122 Campus Drive S.E., Rochester. 4:30 p.m.

Rochester Zoning Board of Appeals, city-county Government Center, council chambers, 151 Fourth St.

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2007-05-29T08:12:00.001-07:00

Press report: car salespeople use FSA regulation to 'flog car cover'

A report in the Guardian's Money supplement of 10 March said several car buyers had reported commission-hungry car salesmen making them sit through sales pitches for gap insurance by falsely claiming that Financial Services Authority rules require it.

Gap insurance covers the difference between an insurance company's offer if a car is written off or irrecoverably stolen, and the money still owed on a hire-purchase agreement. The Guardian report says such insurance from a car dealer costs £300-400, but half that amount if bought elsewhere; a web-based supplier called Clik4gap quotes £152 to cover a £10,000 car for three years.

The report said three buyers from a Honda dealership had complained of such pressure to buy gap insurance, but added that it was not uncommon elsewhere.

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2007-05-29T06:55:00.001-07:00

LUKoil to obtain $250 mln loan refinancing facility

MOSCOW, March 27 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's largest crude producer LUKoil [RTS: LKOH] will obtain a $250 million loan refinancing facility, the company's press office said Tuesday.

LUKoil has instructed ABN Amro and Calyon Bank to arrange an unsecured loan facility at LIBOR + 0.40% per annum with a five-year maturity, the press office said.

The facility is intended to finance the remainder of the $765 million syndicated loan facility secured on export receivables, which the company obtained in 2003, the press office said.

LUKoil intends to use the new borrowing to restructure a part of its debt by replacing a relatively expensive secured facility with a less expensive unsecured loan, the press office said.

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2007-05-29T05:49:00.001-07:00

New Century Stock Resumes Slide; GE Unit Curbs Loans (Update4)

March 9 (Bloomberg) -- New Century Financial Corp.'s stock fell for a second day, hitting its lowest level in more than eight years, as Merrill Lynch & Co. analyst Kenneth Bruce predicted the mortgage company will go bankrupt.

Talks with lenders to save Irvine, California-based New Century aren't likely to succeed, Bruce wrote in a report today. New Century, the second-biggest U.S. ``subprime'' mortgage company, said yesterday it won't make any more loans as it tries to replace credit lines revoked by its backers. The shares tumbled 66 cents, or 17 percent, to $3.21 as of 4:26 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. They traded as low as $2.96, the least since October 1998.

The company's ``next disclosure is likely a bankruptcy filing,'' Bruce wrote in a report today that carried a ``sell'' rating.

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2007-05-28T01:53:00.001-07:00

Insurance.com Purchases 4insurance.com

CLEVELAND -- Insurance.com today announced the purchase of 4insurance.com, one of the original insurance sites on the internet.

Launched in 1996 by iHomeowners, 4insurance.com offers consumers the ability to shop for auto, life, home and health insurance products. As a result of the acquisition, 4insurance.com will now offer consumers the ability to get instant, accurate car insurance quotes from over a dozen of the nations leading auto insurance companies. As the countrys largest online auto insurance agency, Insurance.coms customers report they save on average $451 per year on their car insurance.

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2007-05-27T22:58:00.001-07:00

Shamil fund success

MANAMA: Bahrain-based Shamil Bank announced a successful partial exit of the $50-million US Development Opportunities Fund I Limited (USDOF I) through the disposition of one of the assets comprising the portfolio.

USDOF I, one of Shamil's real estate Modaraba Funds, provided investors with an opportunity to invest in the development of two condominium projects in the US - one in Fairfax, Virginia and the other in Miami, Florida.

The Fund, which was subscribed for in December 2005, projected the realisation of an internal rate of return (IRR) of 17 per cent over an investment period of two years.

In its capacity as the Modareb, Shamil Bank has closely monitored the investment's progress leading to the successful exit from the Virginia-based project at an IRR one-hundred basis points higher than initially projected.

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2007-05-27T08:17:00.001-07:00

South Bulletin Board

Bethel Park -- Christ United Methodist Church, 44 Highland Road, will host the 42-member choir from Hope College for a concert at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow. Cost is $10 or $5 for students. Tickets can be purchased in the church office. For more information, call 412-835-6621.

Bethel Park -- Round Table Ministries will hold Wednesday night family dinners from 5:30 to 6:30 every Wednesday at Christ United Methodist Church, 44 Highland Road. Cost is $5 for adults, $2.50 for children ages 12 and under.

Christ United Methodist Church will also host Kids Connect Club at 6:45 p.m. Wednesdays. A storyteller will perform Wednesday. To register, call 412-835-6621.

Mt. Lebanon -- Mt. Lebanon Christian Church, Cedar Boulevard and Hollycrest Road, will hold adult Sunday school classes at 10 a.m.

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2007-05-27T06:50:00.001-07:00

Creating congestion in a roundabout way

One of the only real advantages in being considered nuts is that you have nothing to lose in expressing an opinion. That, and people generally allow you the privacy of your own gondola cabin when heading up the mountain.

With that preface, I am going to give you my radical and previously unexpressed solution to alleviate some local traffic congestion.

Here it is in my own humble and well chosen words: Bulldoze the roundabout and re-install a traffic light in its place.

I'm serious.

The reason is simple: Our $6 million traffic circle on the outskirts of our town doesn't work.

The reason it doesn't function well is that traffic circles always favor a flow of traffic that crosses (read: cuts off) another flow of traffic, irregardless of the volume of any particular competing flow of automobiles, busses, and trucks.

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2007-05-27T00:30:00.001-07:00

A Loser Fairy Tale

THE GIRLS ARE WAITING -- a ritual whenever Benji and Joel Madden are working in rock-star mode.

It's a Saturday afternoon at XM Satellite Radio's headquarters in Northeast Washington, and the identical twin brothers have just finished performing some of the songs they've written together for their band, Good Charlotte. Just two voices and an acoustic guitar, the way it was in the beginning, when they were 16-year-olds from Southern Maryland hellbent on becoming famous. This concert taping is an important promotional date for the brothers, who are hoping to generate interest in a new Good Charlotte album even as they wonder whether their band's moment has already passed.

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2007-05-26T23:21:00.001-07:00

FBI Finds Online Fraud Aimed at Hotel Guests, Internet Cafes

May 3 (Bloomberg) -- Tens of millions of dollars have been looted from online brokerage accounts in a fast-growing fraud that targets unsuspecting hotel guests and Internet cafe patrons, Federal Bureau of Investigation officials say.

The U.S. Justice Department has stepped up enforcement against the schemes, which combine elements of 21st-century identity theft and old-fashioned stock fraud; the department unsealed its first criminal charges in March. Five civil complaints have been brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission since December.

The scams cost New York-based E*Trade Financial Corp. $18 million in last year's third quarter to reimburse customers whose accounts were pilfered. TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. said it spent $4 million.

``I don't want it to be this panic, but the fact of the matter is everyone's vulnerable,'' Shawn Henry, deputy assistant director of the FBI's Cyber Division, said in an interview at the bureau's Washington headquarters.

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2007-05-26T01:46:00.001-07:00

Teamplay is catching up with India Inc

He had no favourites and the best performers were adequately compensated. Always. Though polite, he never indulged in meaningless banter. In such a performance-oriented small company, showing growth every quarter was never a problem. At the end of the year, he was a happy man. So were his colleagues, he thought. But one fine morning, he received two resignation letters from the top managerial team. The number went up to three, five.... "Being a thorough professional alone does not help in keeping the flock together,'' the senior exec told ET requesting anonymity. "I would say it's more, and not equally, important to know the problems faced by executives in their personal lives. You may call it team building but now I make sure I know the names of spouses and children of the execs I engage with on a daily basis.

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2007-05-25T22:39:00.001-07:00

Nigeria: Vogts Arrives, Promises Better Days for Nigerian Soccer

New Super Eagles' Chief Coach Berti Vogts arrived Abuja yesterday and promised to help boost the fortunes of Nigerian football while stressing that he was starting work immediately.

The German coach, whose Lufthansa flight touched down at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport a little after 4pm, was accompanied by the Nigeria Football Association (NFA) chairman, Alhaji Sani Lulu Abdullahi and FA Technical Committee head, Chief Taiwo Ogunjobi. Both men had gone to Germany last weekend to facilitate Vogts' arrival.

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2007-05-25T21:00:00.001-07:00

Tension over ECB rate rises

The ECB's forecasts for growth and inflation are based on the premise that the bank's base lending-rate will rise by half a percentage point to 4 per cent during the course of the year. It last rose, to 3.5 per cent, in December.

Most economists expect a quarter-point rise on Thursday and many predict the ECB's governing council will decide a similar increase in May, June or July. A few observers even see rates hitting 4.25 per cent in the latter half of the year.

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GM says comeback is rolling

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- General Motors, written off for nearly dead in 2005, says it is firmly on the comeback road thanks to the successful launch of new products and a painful reorganization program.

"At the end of the day, we will have the biggest turnaround in American corporate history," Mike Jackson, GM vice president for vehicle marketing and advertising, said yesterday at a media roundtable.

Earlier this month, GM posted a $950 million fourth-quarter profit, its second quarterly profit in two years. The company had a loss of $10.4 billion in 2005 and a $2 billion net loss overall in 2006.

GM, which sold about 9.09 million cars and trucks worldwide last year, has had to take some tough steps toward recovery. In 2005, the company announced it would eliminate 30,000 jobs at 12 facilities across the country by next year.

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2007-05-25T08:53:00.001-07:00

No City cars for foremen on weekends

Several foremen employed by the City of Chateaugjuay were in the habit of retaining their City-owned vehicles on weekends even though they were not working. But City Council, directed by Mayor Sergio Pavone, has now put the brakes to this practice.

From now on, only foremen on watch duty to answer emergencies, such as an aqueduct break, will be able to use a City car on weekends, according to a new policy adopted by Chateauguay's elected officials on March 6.

"If a foreman is not on the job, he will have to leave his (or her) car with the municipality," Pavone emphasized.

Up to March 6, he recalled, the City had no policy regarding the use of its vehicles by its employees.

The measure is the result of fiscal considerations. When an employer furnishes a vehicle for an employee's own personal use, that represents a taxable benefit, the Mayor reminded.

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Basketball ShoeThe apparent confessions of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed to planning the September 11 attacks were today met with shock and scepticism in almost equal measure.

The alleged No 3 in al-Qaida has long been suspected of being the mastermind behind the 2001 attacks in America but, if true, Mr Mohammed's most recent admissions would confirm his as a man the US has described as "one of history's most infamous terrorists".

Mr Mohammed was arrested in Pakistan in 2003 and spent time in secret CIA prisons before being moved with 13 others to a maximum security compound at Guantnamo Bay last year.

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Basketball Shoe With the advent of spring, new horizons of fashion arrives but once you buy an accessory it can be used and reused for a long time. Accessories are multifunctional, they can renew any outfit.

Here are some updates for the coming spring season.

This season shoe are prepared to make a fashion statement with lucite heels, cork-soled platforms, high-heeled pumps in yellow, red, polka dot, striped and animal prints. You can also wear flats with shorts, skinny pants or the new wide-legged slacks.

Patent leather jacket is back to add oomph to an outfit. You can wear them over a dress, jeans, capris.

Wide belts worn at the waist made of washed silks and patent leather can bring a 'get up and go' look in you.

Gone are the days when handbags had larded studs, embroidery and accents.

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2007-04-25T08:07:00.001-07:00

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a safeguard for distressed homeowners, The Ohio Housing Finance Agency (OHFA) has pledged to provide refinancing for certain at-risk borrowers across their state.On April 2, 2007, the agency will officially unveil a refinancing program designed to help borrowers dealing with financial hardships such as job loss, divorce, or rising interest rates on adjustable-rate mortgages."We are aware of the detrimental effect of unaffordable monthly mortgage payments on the people of the State of Ohio," said Doug Garver, executive director. "The agency has worked diligently with our partners to develop a refinancing program that will address this issue. After helping over 100,000 families purchase their first residence, OHFA is determined to help other families continue to afford the place they call home."The agency says the program will offer 30-year fixed-rate loans and a 20-year fixed-rate second mortgage option at an amount up to four percent of the home's appraised value to assist with closing costs. D2C.

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Cashback is a sweet, melancholy comedy for rueful romantics that should have landed here to honour St. Valentine. But we'll happily take it in the name of St. Patrick.

This expanded feature-length version of the 2006 Oscar-nominated short film by hugely talented young British writer-director Sean Ellis deals with the unhappy consequences of being dumped by a girlfriend.

The question asked is, What is love, anyway? And while we're at it, What is beauty? As formulated by shoe-gazing art student Ben Willis (appealing Sean Biggerstaff, the Quidditch captain in the first two Harry Potter films), there is no easy answer.

Ben is in pain. One day he's thick as thieves with Suzy (Michelle Ryan). The next, she's ditched him for a bigger man on campus. Because he's a sensitive artist, he takes the news like a shaft to the heart. Buy-in-Home.

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2007-04-23T04:02:00.001-07:00

Chunky Heels Are Leading Shoe Fashion Parade

This spring, don't worry too much if your toes are round or pointy, or whether you can start wearing light-colored leather: The big shoe stories of the season are about interesting materials and sculpted heels.

A couple of pairs of wood, cork, jute or raffia wedge sandals, plus a peep-toe pump and a jazzed-up ballet slipper will easily fast-forward your warm-weather wardrobe from last Labor Day to the present. Heel heights run the gamut but be warned - they're thicker than last year.
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